Despite the Redlegs’ surprising loss to Woodville-West Torrens at The Parade on Friday night, Thomas was again a standout – racking up 30 touches and proving influential around stoppages.
“His first half was solid and he was trying his guts out in the stoppages and probably wasn’t as dominant as he has been previously,” Football development manager Daniel Healy told portadelaidefc.com.au.
“But his second half was exceptional – particularly in a team that struggled – and he was very strong, physical and set up clearances.”
Three other players were involved in the match, with Kane Mitchell making his SANFL debut after being placed back on the rookie list last week, while Jarrad Redden played his return match for the Eagles.
The pair struggled in patches however, with Redden used partly as a ruck, partly as a forward, while Mitchell couldn’t find the space he has at AFL level and was limited in his influence.
“Reddo played about a third of the game in the ruck, which is not as much as we’d like – but when he was in the middle he was very good, it was a highlight and a feature of his night,” explained Healy.
“There wasn’t enough space for Kane to show off his running power and he struggled to find the free ball and run-and-carry.
“A tough initiation for him at SANFL level but he continued to keep trying and running all night.”
Darren Pfeiffer struggled for the Redlegs playing across half-back and lacked the influence that characterised his SANFL performances last year.
In contrast, Nick Salter made his anticipated return to football after a foot injury and was impressive playing in a defensive role for much of the night.
Healy was encouraged by the early signs shown by Salter and is hopeful of a better return from injury for him this year.
“He (Salter) was pretty good - if I compare it to a year ago when he was making a similar comeback, he certainly moved sharper and was involved in the game a lot more,” said Healy.
“It’s a big tick for our rehab team that they kept him in good stead for this return.
“He played mainly back and was kicking the ball really well, his man probably kicked just one goal on him, but generally Salts’ return was very encouraging.”
North Adelaide and West Adelaide went head-to-head over at Richmond Oval and three Power-listed players lined up in the Roosters’ league side.
Each brought something to the table, with Nathan Blee taking a step forward in his running and linkage work, while Andrew Moore was intense playing as an inside midfielder.
Daniel Stewart had a big third term, which influenced the Roosters’ fortunes at that stage of the game.
But it was Blee and Moore’s performances that were most impressive to development coach Stuart Cochrane.
“Although I didn’t feel he (Blee) had a massive impact in the game, I thought it was pleasing on the whole to see some of his great running and second and third efforts,” Cochrane told portadelaidefc.com.au.
“We’ve been working closely with him on getting him to do that and it’s really good to see he’s taken that feedback on board and is starting to show it during games.
“Moorey had a quiet night when you look at his stats, but he was involved in everything around stoppage and I’d reckon it would be a record number of ‘first hands’ he had on the ball.
“He wasn’t always able to break through – there were lots of numbers – but he read the taps really well and was very intense.”
John Butcher played as a guest for West Adelaide’s reserves, but struggled with limited supply forward of centre.
He will return for Port Adelaide’s SANFL team this week.
There was no Tom Logan on hand to guide the Glenelg’s midfield against Central District this week, but Cameron Hitchcock and Tom Clurey both stepped up to make sure Port Adelaide players had an influence for the Bays.
Clurey continues to make positive gains as Glenelg’s full-back at league level.
“Tom had a pretty good night and got a couple of intercept marks pushing off his man and there’s probably a bit of room for him to react and intercept more,” development coach Tyson Edwards told portadelaidefc.com.au.
“He was only led to the ball two or three times during the night and he looks like he’s playing some good footy at League level.
“Cam (Hitchcock) started off the back of the square at centre bounces and pushed forward.
“He basically played most of the game forward and was good again, but still kicking quite a few behinds – 2 goals, 4 points – but he continues to play the way we know he can.”
Sam Colquhoun had an uneven performance by his usual high standards, but Edwards was still satisfied with his performance on a wing for the Bulldogs.
And while Jack Hombsch had a very quiet performance for Sturt’s league side against South Adelaide at Unley Oval, tall forward Mason Shaw and midfielder Brendon Ah Chee were both impressive at reserves-level for the Panthers.
“Mason played forward as usual and got into the front spot at contests more this week,” said Healy.
“He had the purple patch in the third quarter and when his confidence is up he looks a dangerous player, so we’ve got to work with him on spreading the ‘patch’ for longer.”
Ah Chee played as a guest for South this week with Port Adelaide’s SANFL side having the bye and was impressive.
“Brendon kicked the ball really well and controlled it really well in tight by evading tackles,” said Healy.
“He went forward in the second half which limited his impact – he did kick a goal – but he was pretty pleasing overall.”
SANFL Player stats breakdown – League Round 4
Matt Thomas (Norwood): 30 disposals, 3 marks, 4 tackles, 7 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50, 1.0
Darren Pfeiffer (Norwood): 12 disposals, 1 mark, 2 rebound 50s
Kane Mitchell (Woodville-West Torrens): 14 disposals, 4 marks, 1 tackle, 3 clearances, 4 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50
Jarrad Redden (WWT): 10 disposals, 2 marks, 1 tackle, 19 hit outs, 2 clearances, 2 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50, 1.0
Nathan Blee (North Adelaide): 21 disposals, 8 marks, 3 inside 50s, 1 rebound 50
Andrew Moore (NA): 15 disposals, 2 marks, 5 tackles, 6 clearances, 1 inside 50, 2 rebound 50s, 1.2
Daniel Stewart (NA): 15 disposals, 9 marks, 1 tackle, 9 hit outs, 5 inside 50s, 1.1
Jack Hombsch (Sturt): 6 disposals, 1 mark
Sam Colquhoun (Central District): 22 disposals, 5 marks, 1 tackle, 1 clearance, 3 rebound 50s
Cameron Hitchcock (Glenelg): 18 disposals, 6 marks, 1 tackle, 1 clearance 7 inside 50s, 2.4
Tom Clurey (G): 18 disposals, 7 marks, 2 tackles, 1 clearance 2 inside 50s, 6 rebound 50s
SANFL Player stats breakdown – Reserves Round 4
Nick Salter (WWT) – 20 disposals, 6 marks, 1 tackle, 2 inside 50s, 2 rebound 50s, 2.2
John Butcher (WA) - 10 disposals, 4 marks, 2 tackles, 1.1
Brendon Ah Chee (SA) – 23 disposals, 5 marks, 5 clearances, 5 inside 50s, 4 rebound 50s, 0.1
Mason Shaw (SA) – 10 disposals, 7 marks, 1 clearance, inside 50s, 3.2
